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ISLAMKOT: In bleak Thar desert, the roar of trucks is constant at a massive Chinese-backed coal power project the government sees as an answer to chronic energy shortages, but which activists warn is an environmental disaster.

Machines are running round the clock to finish the mine and coal power plant, a flagship project of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that has seen Beijing provide billions of dollars in financing to its southwestern neighbour.

Much of it is for infrastructure and power in a country where blackouts have infuriated citizens and hamstrung the economy for years.

And while coal is going out of vogue in most other parts of the world because of its environmental impact, it will fuel nine of the 17 proposed CPEC power plants.

Experts say Thar plant should be able to produce 200,000MW over the next hundred years

The one in Thar sits atop 175 billion tonnes of coal – one of the largest deposits in the world. Discovered in 1992, it has remained unexploited until now, but is expected to yield 3.8 million tonnes a year when fully operational.

A few kilometres away, towering chimneys emerge from the sand dunes as Pakistani and Chinese workers toil away on a 660-megawatt power plant which will burn coal from the mine.

After struggling for years to upgrade its power infrastructure, Pakistani leaders have touted the CPEC as a “game changer” that will help lift the ailing economy, dismissing concerns that Chinese financing will lead to unsustainable debts and that the projects are boosting Beijing’s interests at Islamabad’s expense.

“We are five months ahead of schedule,” said Shams Shaikh, director-general of the Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC), a joint China-Pakistan venture that has invested around 1.7bn euros ($1.9bn) in the Thar mine-and-plant project.

Experts say the site should be able to produce 200,000MW of electricity over the next hundred years – a boon for the energy-starved country where demand increases by eight per cent each year, according to official statistics.

Water warning

Despite the fanfare and government assurances, the project has triggered concern about its impact on the environment.

The type of coal in Thar is lignite, notorious for its poor energy efficiency and high carbon dioxide emissions.

Project officials insist its operations will comply with national and international environmental laws.

But mining coal and burning it for power are water-intensive activities, and villagers in this impoverished, vast stretch of desert say the project is playing havoc with local supplies.

Underground rivers which previously flowed into the mine have been diverted, and residents of Gorano, a small village some 25km from the coal project, claim their pastures have been transformed into a salt lake due to water diversions and the dumping of waste.

“It’s complete chaos,” said Raja who goes by one name, while another local, Yameen Bhatti, added: “The (diverted) water has attracted mosquitoes, which spread diseases.”

The SECMC says it has given Rs950m to the community as compensation, but after the floodwaters recede, experts warn the residents will probably continue to struggle as the thirsty power project will consume a huge amount of groundwater.

Environmental concerns about Pakistan’s coal spree go beyond the villages of Thar. The United Nations has warned that the country risks an “absolute” water shortage by 2025, and activists have warned about the impact of such industries on increasingly scarce water supplies.

Officials have said that the country’s new coal plants will use the most efficient technology available to minimise pollution.

“While the rest of the world is abandoning coal, we are throwing ourselves into this disaster,” said Omar Cheema, an environmental expert.

Some experts and officials have also suggested it would be cheaper to invest in renewables as the price of solar and wind is dropping, and several international studies have also shown that coal is no longer competitive.

Irfan Yousuf, director of renewables at the Ministry of Energy, estimated the per-kilowatt price of solar power at Rs4.8, compared with Rs8.5 for coal.

But Pakistani authorities argue that using local coal would help cut fuel imports, saving precious billions in foreign exchange, and would also provide reliable power round the clock, unlike fluctuating output from renewable sources.

Some have compared Pakistan with India, which has announced ambitious plans to invest in renewable energy. But India is heavily dependent on coal, which provides more than 75pc of its electricity.

On DawnNews

Comments (12) Closed

Masterstroke

Nov 16, 2018 07:44am

Those are when coal plants were cheaper source when India started coal plants. But has of now India using all its resources to be fully utilize on renewable energy sources. Coal is somehow necessary but electricity from.coal is reducing every year in.India and in the world.

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Zak

Nov 16, 2018 08:22am

Someone needs to do forward planning.

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Narinder Dogra

Nov 16, 2018 09:19am

@Zak,

Forward thinking is more appropriate.

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brr

Nov 16, 2018 09:19am

corporations make money and are happy even as they pollute, govt collects taxes are is happy. Locals lose and drink pollutted water and breathe polluted air - but who cares - this is all the progress they will ever get.

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SHAHID SATTAR

Nov 16, 2018 09:20am

@Zak, You mean to say there is a tomorrow? All the while we thought it was only today and work for making hey while the going is good would be the norm.

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M. Ahmed

Nov 16, 2018 10:47am

Short sighted thinking... hydro power generation is a better solution

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Waqas

Nov 16, 2018 11:09am

Coal should b just for short term help while 4 long term renewables ahoukd b tapped.
C last line "India is heavily dependent on coal, which provides more than 75pc of its electricity"

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Omar

Nov 16, 2018 11:13am

For a country with no coal power plants to building several it would be unfair to blame Pakistan for having a a few coal powered plants. Our carbon footprint will next to nothing compare to our immediate neighbours, Europe and the rest of the developing world. It should be mentioned that we are also developing other resources including renewable energy resources. Better to paint a more balanced picture.

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Swiss Neutral

Nov 16, 2018 12:33pm

Change with time or face the consequences

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Mavic Pro

Nov 16, 2018 07:08pm

So why it was not a environmental disaster 20 or 30 years ago when all developed countries used it for their benefit?

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Mavic Pro

Nov 16, 2018 07:11pm

@Masterstroke, oh please. Stop bragging about India. 60-70% plants run on coal and no plan to shut them down.

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kks

Nov 16, 2018 07:54pm

It is important to use our local coal with maximum protection of environment. Today all major economies are using coal in one form or other to produce electricity. Pakistan has very little coal consumption.